green makeup review

In the last year I’ve become a fan of Neve cosmetics without even realising it how much. Step by step, after trying slowly their novelties I found myself saying “I love those pastelli pencils!” or “Those pigments are awesome”! and “It’s time to try one of their palettes!”. And yes here I am with their newest Duochrome palette! I don’t know why I haven’t tried yet any of their palettes…One reason is that I thought, ok I still have plenty of my palettes for professional use, so yes next time…You know this stuff of procrastination 🙂 But now I’m even more happier that I have finally try it.

The palette has beautiful shimmery shades that are duo chromatic, which means that each shade is made of 2 colours; for instance you have a dark brown with emerald green shimmer. The pigments are awesome in terms of pigmentation! I was blown away when I first put them on my hand. I can easily compare them with professional stuff like Yaby that I love to use for professional work. Here is a quite old picture from a set where I had visible the Yaby palette, so I can show you the comparison. The Yaby palette with the pearl paints (shimmery colours that are almost creamy) is behind the first white palette.

The shades are all easy to apply and blend amazingly well. This stuff is going directly in my makeup kit!

Please note that the colours on my pictures of Neve are a little bit muddy because outside the light wasn’t really good. Bear in mind that they are much more vivid (on swatches too). Below you can see the swatches of the entire palette on daylight.

Neve Duochrome palette swatches; top and bottom row are positioned like in the palette

And I love the names, they are so fun like Mela stregata which means Bewitched apple, Pioggia acida = Acid rain, … 🙂

Neve cosmetics Bio primer for dry skin

There couldn’t be more surprises than adding a new product like a primer to the collection. It is out today! And they did 2 of them: one for dry/normal skin and the other for combination skin. I have the one for dry skin. First I thought that is going to be transparent, but it seems they did almost a bb cream. Why almost? Because it has some colour when you open it and put on the skin. But when you wear it, it does not act like a BB cream. Which means that enhances the skin with a light radiant layer, but it does not cover imperfections. Basically it prepares the skin for the next step (foundation), which is what the primer is supposed to do. As you can see on the picture, below on my hand there is the product directly from the tube and above it is blended in the skin and it’s almost invisible. Just a tiny bit of colour. This primer is based on argan oil, shea butter and aloe vera extract. It is free of silicones, which was their purpose to create a silicone-free, mineral-oil free primer. And compared to conventional ones it does it job well.

To conclude, I have to say that Neve cosmetics is growing faster and faster. This young Italian brand doesn’t stop to surprise me; they improve continuously, lots of their formulations are becoming vegan and many products act great even for pro use!

When it comes to create a special make-up look, especially those “fantasy” ones, I’m still a little bit annoyed because there are no make-up pigments with vivid colors in the world of natural cosmetics. At first I was “fighting” with myself that I’d end up using just natural cosmetics…But I soon realized that “fighting” against something that has served me once (and in some cases still does) is unnecessary, because I deprive myself of the most important thing: creativity. Don’t get me wrong, I still believe and stand behind the fact that for everyday use we can wear natural make-up, but if we really need a special color and feel great with it, then there is no need to compromise ourselves. While realizing this and accepting that I can have it all, suddenly have started to appear brands that are a great compromise between natural and synthetic. For example, when I need a pigment in bright magenta I don’t have to buy a conventional brand from big corporations, but I can use brands who make colored pigments without using so much toxic ingredients. And let’s face it: in this moment the industry is not able yet to get all colors from natural sources and some of them come only from synthetic form. Yes, synthetic colors aren’t the best in terms of toxicity but as I said, I won’t give up the creativity. (Plus, have we ever wondered how much synthetic colors have we ingested during our lives?). We have to understand also that colors on the other side have an incredible therapeutic effect! I believe that when someone comes to a point in life when she/he is at ease with himself and the world then there is nothing outside that can harm us. That’s my belief, but I completely understand that not everyone is able yet to accept this. Lots of inside work is needed though. But this is another story 🙂

Coming back to colors: I discovered a nice brand with minerals from US, called SweetPea and Fay who already has a large collection of blushes, eyeshadows and lip products in different and interesting shades. Although they are already great, I believe they have a lot of growing potential in their reserves to offer. Their vision is to offer handmade products with natural ingredients, without renouncing to special bright colors. I haven’t seen lots of reviews about this brand and so I decided to give a try on my own. I have tried products from all their categories: blush, eyeshadow and lip color and I love all of them!

Honestly, when I opened the package I thought at first sight: “oh again classic shades of minerals…” I was so wrong! In all my curiosity, I immediately opened the pots and started to apply the colors on my hands first…UUUH, what a boost of colors! And how pigmented are on “naked” skin (without any cream or foundation on)! I thought, this stuff is very promising! I can compare the eyeshadows easily to pigments from MAC, in terms of color.

SweetPea and Fay eyeshadows review

The first eyeshadow that I opened was Fresh oil. My first thought was: “hmm, a nice deep smokey gray…” Nope! On the surface it looks something between a metallic grey and black. But it has an incredible finish of opalescent deep blue/green and even brown, depending from the angle of light you look at them. This color is awesome on its own to create an ultra chic smoky eye look for the evening! Highly recommended and ultra trendy!

The second eyeshadow is Copper Bird: a beautiful metallic golden copper with orange undertones that you can use on its own or I also like it in combination with Sweet Pea (next eyeshadow I’m going to describe). I find their names so cute 😀 All these eyeshadows are really highly pigmented and they blend very well. You can control the color and build it even more to achieve the desired effect.

Sweet Pea eyeshadow is a lovely light lime green with a shimmery satin effect. The metallic effect is not so emphasized in this eyeshadow and I really think it’s a gorgeous color to wear especially now in spring time. With lots of black mascara to get that lovely doll eyes look.

Last but not least isShrooms is a magnificent color that looks sandy beige, but when applied on the eyes it changes from taupe shimmery beige to reflections of grey under certain angle. So elegant even if you wear it on its own!

INCI: Pure Mica, Sericite, Titanium dioxide, Iron oxide, Tin oxide.

SweetPea and Fay lip colors J’adore les lèvres

This products has really surprised me! Usually when I have in my hands a tube I expect a light glossy finish. Not here! Just with the smallest amount of color from this tube, you will get an incredible creamy long-lasting color! I love, love all four shades! In this moment I wasn’t interested in bright colors like yellow, blue,…for lips, although they have them in their range. More wearable colors attracted my curiosity and as you can see from the picture below (taken in daylight) the colors are sooo pigmented! These lip colors are based on above mentioned ingredients to add color and all natural beeswax, carnauba wax, oils of castor, olive and coconut. While its delicate flavor comes from french vanilla oil.
When I have put my hand under water to wash the color off, I did an experiment and saw that the colors are waterproof as well, because of oils. I also had to wash the hand very well with soap to remove the color which has a very good staying power.

I have tried the following shades:Nantes: This is the favorite color to wear on myself. It’s a terra-cotta medium brown, not too nude and not too dark. It has a slightly orange undertone. Its texture is creamy and it glides great on lips! It’s absolutely a new must-have color, since in upcoming seasons these tonalities are coming back in fashion again!Mermaid Kiss: it’s a light to medium neon pink, perfect for pale skin women with blonde hair and cool tonalities. It has a creamy matte texture. Just this color is even brighter (almost neon) in reality than on photo.

The gilded lady: A very special metallic chocolate gold brown with! Difficult to describe it exactly, since it changes the color depending on the light because of so many colored particles in it.Willa: this is a light purple with a creamy, almost matte lacquered texture and some cool undertones. But in general it’s a very wearable color!

SweetPea and Fay blushes

I was amazed at how pigmented are these blushes! When I have put them on my hand -where as I said was no other base on before-I was blown away when I saw the colors. Even the light pink is so pigmented that I needed to shake off the excess from the brush even more than I usually do. These are the colors I have tried:

Andromeda: “classic” magenta pink with a matte finish and awesome pigmentation. Great for some extravagant looks!Opalescent: this blush has the perfect name, cause it really reminds of an opal gem. (Btw. I love gems and I’m very inspired by their colors and even beneficial properties.). It is a shimmery light pink shade with an opalescent finish. Even if it’s a light shade, a little goes a long way! Amazing to wear now in spring to add a touch of freshness to pale skin.
The ingredients in blush are the same as in eyeshadows. To achieve the desired extravagant shades the blushes have also the addition of red and blue (plus carnauba wax, magnesium myristate and l-lysine) which are indispensable. These blushes are for me an extra addition for my makeup kit when there is some special occasion to create extravagant looks.

To conclude, this is my first general presentation of this brand. I like it as an additional “extravagant accessory” for my makeup kit to create bright colorful looks as green as can be possible now on cosmetic market.

Has anyone tried it yet? What’s your opinion about colors?

I’ve been familiar with Sante cosmetics for a long time and still now I’m very satisfied with this German brand of natural make-up and beauty products which is very renowned here in Europe. However, there are also other similar German brands that I’ll introduce in the future, but I was really curious and fascinated to try Sante’s make-up novelties. Sante has recently updated their formulations and packagings, and even added some new products in the make-up collection, which is my main interest. I have received a few products from this new and so much expected make-up line, that I’ll review for you in this post. Among products that I’m going to review, Sante has also added new lip glosses, nail products, eyeliner pencils, an eyeshadow base and some other products as well.

This lipstick is a new shade among last 4 added colors. I REALLY ADORE this color, especially for spring season, it’s so trendy! And it does suit many women, but mainly those with light skin and hair. It really gives that fresh pop of color to the entire face! I’d say coral pink is the new “red” for spring. I’d describe this shade as not too orange nor too red or yellow, and not too bright or too dull – just the right coral shade! The texture of this lipstick is very soft and smooth on lips. It glides easily and it has also quite a good staying power. It is loaded with natural Jojoba and Almond oils and so it provides hydration to the lips without drying them. Sante lipsticks don’t contain any artificial colors, fragrances and preservatives. Above is the picture of this lipstick on daylight, without flash.

This is not a new product in Sante decorative collection, but it’s of course an evergreen. First, I ADORE this package! I almost don’t

find anymore (among natural products) a nice and modern (and also quite “heavy”) make-up box that looks beautiful and has a mirror. If you recall in mind the lovely vanity compacts with mirrors for a feminine touch-up 🙂 Well, Sante has such a product! I’ve tried the compact powder n.2 which is the 2nd of their 3 shades and is suitable for light-medium skin tones. I’m glad it doesn’t have a total rose undertone, but instead is a very wearable neutral beige. I also like its smell, it reminds me of the natural baby cream delicate smell. Perhaps because it has some natural oils that also prevent the skin to become dry. I use this product on myself and since I have dry skin I’m very satisfied with it! It gives a matte finish, but without looking cakey or overloaded with powder. I apply it with a fluffy powder brush and just gently sweep it across the face, especially on the T-zone. Even if applied under eyes to set concealer/foundation it does not look cakey nor too dry. You can wear it on top of your foundation to set it. Some of you may miss the sponge, but I really don’t. For hygienically reasons I never use sponges from compacts. Absolutely perfect finish! I’d just love to see also a translucent shade and even a few darker ones for contouring as well.

Among a new lash balm and lash extension, Sante has added 2 new mascaras in their collection. I’m going to review the Volumizing one. This mascara comes in black color and a new package. Its wand is very dense as you can see on the picture and thus appropriate for adding volume to the lashes. However, like many natural mascaras its texture is not very thick and so it provides a limited amount of volume. I’d say it has a medium volumizing effect, if you have normal lashes and you add 2-3 coats, it works just fine. But it won’t (like no natural mascara would) satisfy the needs of those who seek in a volumizing mascara too much dense coats and clumpy lashes…Well, I even don’t like this style, if you know what I mean. I like the fact that this mascara does not stick together the lashes and so it combs them very good as well. This is because the design of the wand works well with the mascara’s texture. Sante Volumizing mascara contains natural sunflower and almond oil.

This is a lovely 30ml version of the new hand cream. Because it’s so small, you can have it with you in every bag to nourish your hand everywhere. I’d recommend it for spring time, because this is a hydrating cream with a very light texture. After applying it, it absorbs very quickly and so your hands won’t be sticky. It is loaded with Goji berry extract and natural oils like: Olive, Jojoba, Coconut and Shea butter. All Sante products don’t contain artificial fragrances but their scent is derived from natural essential oils.

First, I really find this new product very interesting especially in a brand with natural cosmetics. I will try my best to describe it technically (or theoretically), because honestly, I don’t need to use it. My lashes are long enough and so I won’t use it, but I have got another idea and I’m really curious if it will give results…I have decided to use it on my eyebrows! Since there is the same logic of hairs growing from the skin, I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work…And so I can tell how it will work just after a period of time. I have a few gaps between my eyebrows that I’ve overplucked in my teens of course (yaaaay!) and would really love them to regrow. Basically, this is a natural based serum that promises to enhance the lashes in 4 weeks. It is packed in a tube and with a wand like those of eyeliners. You also apply it like an eyeliner, the difference is that this is a clear liquid serum. It has to be applied 2x daily on clean lashes and eyelids – when you don’t wear any make-up. But maybe anyone of you has already try it? If you do, I’d really love to hear…

I also have to mention that I like very much the package design of all Sante products! Sante is BDIH and Natrue certified. Some products are also vegan and gluten-free.

In the future I hope to try more of these new products and review them for you.

Does anyone of you use Sante products? Share your experience, please. Thank you!

Couleur caramel Maquillage caffè in Paris

I was curious to try the French make-up brand Couleur caramel for quite a long time, but I haven’t got any opportunity until yesterday. While walking across the city of Paris, I finally found out their Maquillage caffè, which is not just a regular cosmetic store, but an awesome place, where you can try all the products or have your makeup done by a makeup artist. Moreover, the interior is also designed in eco friendly spirit and equipped with furniture made from recycled materials. I find great the idea of having all the products stored in custom-made wooden palettes, that you can put them in front of your mirror, while doing your makeup.

When I entered the shop, I was immediately helped by the sales person, who was very kind and helpful. She provided me all the products and informations I needed for doing my makeup and trying products. I was positively surprised by high hygienic standards. Sometimes, I encounter that makeup artists in many shops don’t use clean brushes. Here it was different. The lady brought me clean brushes and a new sponge. Great! On the make-up table there were also 3 skin care products: cleansing milk, toner and eye makeup remover, a box full of new eyeshadow applicators and cotton pads. Before doing my makeup, I’ve tried some products on my hand and realized that beside huge pigmentation and light but covering texture, the products don’t have any smell, which is very important, especially for sensitive skin.

I wanted to do a natural day makeup on myself. I decided to use just a few products, but the right ones, like a good foundation, a covering concealer and pigmented colors. At the end I was very satisfied with the result. First, I have cleaned properly my face with the cleansing milk and toner, then I’ve applied the pre-makeup base. All these products have a very light, non greasy formula, but at the same time are very hydrating, which is very important for the skin. Then, I’ve applied my foundation. I have chosen the new liquid foundation Hydracoton n.3. I’ve covered my quite dark circles with the Corrective cream (a mix of n.3 and 4). I have also tried to cover some small red spots with the concealer pencil n.350 which did a great work for the entire day! The texture of the foundation was light but very comfortable to wear, like you don’t have any makeup. Since my skin is dry, I don’t need any powder and the liquid foundation stay on the entire day, too. I have sculpted my cheeks with a small amount of bronzer Teint de soleil. I mixed together n.24 and 25, a light mat bronzer and a touch of peach color on the apples of the cheeks and eyelids. Into the crease of the eyes I have added a touch of eyeshadow, a slightly shimmering browny taupe color. To conclude my look, I’ve applied the lengthening mascara in brown to achieve a natural day look. The result were long and full lashes, without clumping. The mascara comes in 4 colors: black, brown, aubergine and blue. For the lips I used the lip balm to nourish the lips. Then I just tapped in the lipstick from the last spring-summer collection Holi color in natural mat lip color shade of rosy berries n.250. The pigmentation was really good, but since my lips were a little bit dehydrated, I’ve applied on top a touch of clear lip gloss n.809.

I was really satisfied with my overall look, products and the service. I have just a small comment about the brushes, I have used synthetic brushes for applying my concealer and for the lips, which were very good. For the blush, I used the angled shaped brush from natural hair, which was ok, but since it wasn’t really soft, I’d be happier to see synthetic brushes in their collection, because they are a green brand. This is just my point of view, which does not reduce the overall good review of the brand.

Green makeup tip The product packaging is environmentally friendly and some products like creams and foundations have the refill option. You can buy separately nice eco-friendly empty glass jars where you can put your favorite cream or liquid foundation. Make-up products have also the refill option, that you can put in nice eco palettes.

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Dasha - (makeup) Artist with a vision of (natural) Beauty. Passionate about fashion, art, photography, painting, flowers, cooking, spiritual development, natural remedies.
I support your true, natural beauty and celebrate it with the best from natural world. It's our birthright to be and feel well!

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I write reviews about products that I like, use and that are free of toxic chemicals from my point of view. I am not paid for reviewing them. I purchase or receive the products (selected by me) for personal use and write my honest opinion about them. New contacts and collaborations are appreciated, but I cannot guarantee a good review, if it doesn't fulfill my conditions: safe ingredients and quality.

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